“How can regional cooperation be maintained and expanded amid U.S.-China strategic competition?” ... A 3B strategy proposed

[Financial News] Ahn In-hae, former president of the Korean Association of International Studies and a special professor at Sungkonghoe University, proposed ways to establish mechanisms for expanding cooperation among Asia-Pacific countries and governance frameworks for key sectors, and advocated ways to make use of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in regional cooperation.
Former Chair Ahn made the proposal while attending as South Korea’s representative at the “2026 APEC High-Level Dialogue,” held in Bao’an, Shenzhen, China, on the 13th. At the meeting, he stressed, “To ensure that regional cooperation is not weakened amid fierce strategic competition between the United States and China, we must maintain a balance between security interests and economic openness (Balance), and promote the building of institutions, standards and mechanisms (Build) needed for cooperation, thereby continuing to serve as a bridge (Bridge) for regional cooperation.” 
The meeting was organized by Renmin University of China ahead of the “APEC Summit,” to be held in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19. Around 300 scholars and heads of major government think tanks from 21 APEC member countries, including host China, attended.
The meeting, held under the theme “The Reconfiguration of the Global Landscape and New Drivers of Asia-Pacific Development,” was attended by former Chinese vice foreign minister Le Yucheng; former Renmin University president Lin Shangli; Chen Xun, head of Renmin University’s Research Institute on Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era; Sergey Bodrunov, a professor at the Russian Academy of Social Sciences and head of the S.Y. Witte Institute for New Industrial Development; and Nguyen Thi Phuong Hoa, a professor at the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (VASS), among others.
At the meeting, participants held in-depth discussions on forward-looking approaches to building an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future. Ahn argued that, while avoiding strategic competition, APEC should make greater use of its strengths, including consensus-building and non-binding cooperation, and develop into an important platform for regional cooperative governance.
Participants also held in-depth discussions on the topic “Institutional Innovation and Cooperation Mechanisms for Cooperative Governance and Building the APEC Community.”
Renmin University of China, founded by the Chinese Communist Party, is one of China’s 10 leading universities. It focuses on commissioned projects and policy-advisory research for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China and the Communist Party.  



[email protected] Lee Seok-woo, International Affairs Specialist Reporter